To
be a Skilled Texas Holdem player, you must
understand position at the table!
Seated On the Button -
the best position!
The dealer position, on
the button, is valuable due to the fact that you have
the opportunity to see how many players are still in on
the hand and how strongly they feel about their hand.
Preflop, you are the last to act before the blinds play.
After the flop, you get to play last.
Skill Tip! If you are on the button
with no prior calls or raises and have with a good
starting hand, raise the blinds! Most of the time they
will fold.
Early betting positions
are always subject to being raised by other players
after you so you can take advantage of being on the
button, when you have a good hand of course.
You can also have an
advantage if you are immediately before the button and
the person on the button folds. A huge advantage if they
fold before the flop. In essence you are now on the
button!
Skill Tip! If you are
on the button with multiple callers with
a good starting hand, make a minumum
raise. Most players will call, and you may
eliminate the players on a draw, increasing your odds of
winning the hand. And you will boost the Pot
size!
Early to middle Position - Play
with care!
Players who act after you
are in better positions to outplay you. You need to play
tight in the early position. Playing borderline hands
will lose you money in the long run.
If you do not have
good starting cards, simply do not raise, do not call,
do not fish, and do not take the chance, end of
story. Using the point count
strategy here can make you a big
winner!
Late Position - loosen up just a
bit
If the players have all folded to
you, you may have a chance to pick up a pot, play
premium hands agressively to discourage the button
player and the blinds from calling. Again, the point
count strategy will pay for itself when you apply it in
late position!
Seated in the
Blinds - the worst position!
In the the small
blind and big blind positions, your hand values
generally drop. Firstly, most players will assume you do
not have a good starting hand. And you may end
up betting or calling with weaker starting
hands than you normally would play.
In the small blind, early in the game
when the stakes are low, you may wish to see a flop for
a minimal call. Do this only when there are few callers
and you have a good drawing hand.
In the blinds, fold unless you hit a
good flop! DO NOT CHASE! There is a reason the
other players are betting!
Many Texas Holdem Poker tournaments have
been won by those who truly understand how to make the
most out of the "blind" positions. Also understand, you
don't have to be on the button or in good position to
win. You can win anywhere on a Texas Holdem Poker table
but it helps to know where the advantages lie.
Consider that you play a blind position
2-1 over the dealer position during a tournament. The
"blinds" are what you would call an "early" position.
You have no feedback from the other players as to what
type of hand you think they have, and how much they are
willing to wager on their hands. Unless you start out
with strong hole cards, you need to be very conservative
and check your hand.
Skill
tip!In the small blind, players
are tempted to gamble based upon the idea that they
already have half of the ante in the pot, so why not
gamble and call the other half. Do not do this! Save
your chips for the monsters that will come your
way!
Skill tip!In the big blind, if
you are dealt a monster and the table is loose, just
check! Do not reveal your hand strength with a raise. If
you hit the flop, check and let the other loose players
bet, then use the Check Raise.
Remember, good
players win with a solid game plan; Texas Holdem Poker
is a game of strategy! Skilled players DO NOT rely
on luck!
Learn more about Texas Holdem Poker
Position and Position Strategy plus some untold
poker secrets in the ebook:
